The present invention generally relates to the field of power conversion and power distribution. Specifically, the present invention is directed to an efficient system for power conversion and distribution in an electronics equipment cabinet for avionics systems.
Electronics equipment cabinets convert and distribute internal power supplied by an aircraft power source. Generally, power conversion and distribution in electronics equipment cabinets is accomplished using single rail supply designs. For example, the Boeing 787 power distribution system uses a single rail output. The single rail design feeds power to load modules. Generally, the load modules are power converters.
The existing power conversion and distribution systems used in the Boeing 787 have significant safety and reliability issues. For example, multiple power supplies share load modules. Load module sharing leads to undesirable operational conditions such as reverse current flow. Today's high reliability applications require segregated, redundant power supply inputs. These power supplies must support power requirements for internal load modules without adding circuit complexity, power loss or decreased reliability. Moreover, efficient power distribution within modern electronics equipment cabinets will require a system with hot-swap capability, redundancy and fault tolerant design. Modern electronics equipment cabinets are typically constructed from one or more power supply converters and several electronics modules innerconnected on a back plane.